New Year Celebrations

Cheers to a good year!

 From Sydney to San Francisco, the world's major cities mark the beginning of the new year with grand firework displays and other traditions.

Fireworks illuminated skies over Paris, Rio and Sydney to celebrate the entry to 2024, while in Israel, Gaza and Ukraine, rockets and strikes marked the year's earliest hours.

Pope Francis recalls 2023 as a year marked by wartime suffering